Winterthur: Wilmington, Del.

Winterthur: Wilmington, Del.

The 966-acre Winterthur estate is the former home of Henry Francis du PontHenry Francis du Pont , a scion of the du Pont dynasty, made famous for its chemical empire. He was born on the estate in 1889 and was “head gardener” of Winterthur for most of his life.

The 60-acre garden contains a collection of exotic and native plants that have color almost year-round. For example, the peony garden, begun in 1946, is filled with Japanese, Chinese and French hybrid herbaceous peonies as well as tree peonies. The peony garden is one of two formal gardens at Winterthur. The second is the sundial garden created in 1957 on the site of the tennis and croquet courts from a design by Marian Coffin, a noted landscape architect.